Medical carbon dioxide and carbogenCarbon dioxide is used as an insufflation gas and cooling agent. Carbogen is a mixture of carbon dioxide and oxygen, it is used to stimulate breathing in the treatment of respiratory disease.

Medical carbon dioxide

Medical carbon dioxide (CO2) has various medical purposes. It is used as a pure gas or in specialised mixtures with other gases in stimulating breathing, anaesthesia and sterilisation of equipment.

Medical carbon dioxide can be used as an insufflation gas for minimal invasive surgery, such as laparoscopy, endoscopy and arthroscopy, to enlarge and stabilise body cavities for better visibility of the surgical field. In its liquid phase, medical carbon dioxide can be used to provide temperatures down to -76° C, for cryotherapy or for local analgesia.

Other applications of medical carbon dioxide include transient respiratory stimulation and encouragement of deep breathing and coughing to prevent or treat atelectasis.

Medical carbon dioxide is a liquefied medicinal gas, supplied in cylinders filled to a high pressure. For more information on our medical carbon dioxide cylinders, please see the BOC medical gas brochure (PDF).

Carbogen medical carbon dioxide and oxygen mixture

Carbogen is used in a number of medical applications, administration is by mask or endotracheal tube. It is used to stimulate respiration in situations such as the investigation and assessment of chronic respiratory disease, to stimulate breathing after a period of apnoea, and in the management of chronic respiratory obstruction after the obstruction has been relieved. Carbogen is also added to a number of anaesthetic and oxygenation mixtures used under special conditions such as cardio-pulmonary bypass surgery and the management of renal dialysis.

Carbogen is a permanent gas supplied in cylinders filled to a high pressure. For more information on carbogen please refer to the Carbogen brochure on the right.